According to a recent survey, more than 80% of customers are willing to spend extra money in order to receive a more satisfactory experience. This indicates that, in today’s business environment, the positive customer experience offered by a brand can have a greater influence on conversion rates than the actual products or prices.
Conversational commerce, referred to as chat commerce or conversational marketing, offers online retailers the opportunity to utilize conversation as a means to effectively sell their products and services.
As long as customer communication is personalized, helpful, and guides the consumer through the sales funnel, it is immaterial whether the conversational experience is provided through a chat app, chatbot, voice assistant, or messaging platform, as it fulfills its purpose.
Conversational commerce offers brands an opportunity to make up for the absence of personal interaction in their online stores. This pertains not only to the absence of a helpful store assistant, but also to the nature of the content that customers receive.
It is becoming more and more apparent that conversational commerce is the future, considering that the worldwide expenditure on conversation commerce channels is projected to reach $290 billion by 2025.
How Does Conversational Commerce Really Work?
Ecommerce stores have the opportunity to engage with customers throughout their customer journey through the use of conversational commerce.
This type of selling, in contrast to aggressive pop-ups and banners, initiates a conversation with your potential customers that allows for the development of stronger relationships.
At every step, the five stages of the customer journey map emphasize the utilization and application of conversation commerce.
Awareness.
The commencement of this phase occurs when a customer becomes aware of an issue and initiates a search for possible solutions, thereby stumbling upon your brand.
If customers are unaware of your brand, selling great products and having attractive pages will not lead to any purchases. Therefore, the awareness stage is crucial in the funnel.
Using conversational tools, you have the opportunity to establish a connection with customers who are in the initial stages of their search for providers like yourself. By utilizing these tools effectively, you can demonstrate your understanding of their concerns and your ability to offer viable solutions to their problems.
Consideration.
At this point, customers have already engaged in initial research and familiarized themselves to some extent with your company. Yet, their quest for information is still ongoing.
During this stage, customers are actively seeking additional information, comparing your offering with other available options, and consulting user reviews. At this point, harnessing the power of conversation can provide customers with further details, enabling them to gain a deeper understanding of your offer.
Decision.
At this stage, the customer is prepared to make a purchase. Nevertheless, it is important not to become complacent, even if they have selected you. It is crucial to provide reassurance to the customer that their decision is the correct one.
During this stage, it is crucial to continue the conversation in order to reinforce the customer’s decision. Offer social proof and promptly address any issues that may arise.
Retention.
Once the customer reaches this stage, you have fulfilled all their previous requirements.
Even though this doesn’t imply that you can stop giving your best effort, it is highly advantageous to focus on satisfying customers who have reached this point, considering that statistics indicate it is five times more cost-effective to keep a current customer compared to acquiring a new one.
In order to sustain a positive rapport with your customers, it is essential to intermittently send messages and promptly address their messages, irrespective of any negativity expressed.
Advocacy.
Arriving at this stage is the most challenging part of the customer journey, as it represents the final phase. At this point, the customer should have become a dedicated brand advocate, eagerly promoting products to their friends and family.
Additionally, there are additional advantages to consider. By engaging in ongoing conversations with customers, you have the opportunity to request testimonials or product reviews, making them feel included and connected to your team. This approach not only enhances those connections but also enhances the credibility of your business in the eyes of potential customers.
Types of Conversational Commerce
After learning about the locations and timings to engage with your customers, it is now crucial to explore the methods through which you can accomplish this. Fortunately, there are several promising alternatives available for you to consider, such as:
Live chat.
Live chat is highly favored as a communication channel due to its ability to facilitate one agent conversing with multiple customers simultaneously, thereby minimizing wait times and enhancing customer satisfaction.
Live chat apps also have significant potential for ecommerce. They allow you to actively interact with visitors to your website, including those who may not seek assistance on their own. Furthermore, they enable you to direct customers on your website and provide personalized suggestions to assist them in selecting a product.
Chatbots.
Chatbots are software tools that assist users by swiftly answering their inquiries through text messages. They are capable of engaging with numerous users at the same time and promptly delivering information 24/7.
In addition, you have the flexibility to apply these features on websites as well as messaging platforms to provide a seamless customer experience throughout various stages of the buyer’s journey. Due to these capabilities, chatbots have become a popular mode of conversational commerce, enabling brands to effortlessly engage with customers.
Messaging apps.
Messenger, WeChat, and WhatsApp are among the popular instances of messaging apps, which are chat platforms facilitating the exchange of instant messages.
Consumers commonly utilize memes, GIFs, videos, and emojis to maintain a lighthearted conversation and increase customer engagement. These communication tools are often utilized for private messaging, reaching out to brands, or engaging in online shopping experiences.
Messaging apps have surpassed social networks in terms of user numbers, with a 20% increase. They facilitate more personalized and authentic customer interactions, resulting in improved conversion rates.
Voice assistants.
Voice assistants are software programs that can be activated by voice commands to respond to user inquiries. These voice assistants, including Google Assistant, Amazon’s Alexa, Cortana, and Siri, have gained significant popularity across various electronic devices.
Brands have been motivated by the increasing popularity of voice assistants to incorporate them into their ecommerce marketing and customer service tactics. Utilizing voice assistants can provide quick responses or guide users to your website, thereby aiding in the expansion of brand awareness.
Benefits of Conversational Commerce for Customer Support
Maintaining effective customer support is crucial for the success of any business, and as previously stated, ensuring customer retention is vital for business growth and profitability. It is important to be proactive and informally communicate with customers to address known customer service challenges and prevent potential issues. Nothing is more exasperating than struggling to find assistance for a product or service, but utilizing conversational commerce platforms and integrations can streamline the support process for both customers and your team.
Live Chat and Chatbot Support
Sometimes, customers will limit their options to a few choices but struggle to proceed and need help in the form of more questions or details. Live Chat and Chatbot services are particularly suitable for this purpose as they offer immediate support, aiding customers in their decision-making and guiding them through the checkout process. This can be done effectively via social media platforms, adding a personal touch to the conversation. The main advantage lies in reducing cart abandonment because if customers can be reached in real-time while they are still on the website, they are less likely to leave without completing their purchase.
Direct Messaging for Support Cases
While certain products demand minimal attention after purchase, other services, in particular, may necessitate further maintenance post-sale. By proactively contacting customers who have opened support cases regarding your product, you can promptly and effectively resolve their issues, ensuring that they feel valued and provided with the distinctive attention and care that distinguishes you from competitors or large online retailers.
Task Management and Reminders
Conversational commerce proves to be suitable for businesses offering services primarily, but it can also be effective for product sales depending on the circumstances. Utilizing Rich Communication Services such as Google’s Business Messages enables you to effortlessly schedule consultation appointments, receive payments, and recommend solutions and additional products. This user-friendly messaging platform ensures your customers feel supported and appreciated throughout the process.
Conversational Commerce in Your Marketing Strategy
Conversational commerce can be highly beneficial for your marketing and sales teams, offering various avenues to assist them. While engaging in conversations with customers has long been regarded as a traditional sales tactic, online chat presents a unique challenge, demanding a more sophisticated approach than simply initiating conversations at networking events while carrying business cards. Presented below are some tried and tested techniques for enhancing your marketing strategy through conversational commerce.
Proactive Live Chat Integration
One of the main advantages of utilizing live chat on your website is the opportunity it presents to proactively engage with potential customers and assist them in making a purchase. By connecting with your customers directly through a representative, you can provide information about related products or fulfill any specific queries they may have. This not only showcases your business in a favorable light but also enhances trust in your recommendations.
It is crucial to note that besides the immediate benefit, most live chat software has the capability to seamlessly integrate with your CRM software, enabling you to gather feedback from these sessions and enhance customer profiles.
There are a few excellent live chat software options available, such as:
Chatbot Integration
Some quality chatbot services that offer similar benefits to live chat, but with the added advantage of automation and ease of use, are ideal for small businesses or websites that do not have a dedicated customer support center. These chatbots can easily answer basic inquiries and carry out common tasks like suggesting similar products or add-ons, all while helping to build a strong relationship between the business and its customers.
Direct Chat and Messaging Promotions
Direct outreach can effectively promote products and services that your consumer may overlook in their independent research, utilizing platforms like social media or messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. Moreover, this marketing approach enables customers to respond with inquiries directly, fostering a sense of authenticity and honesty that enhances the likelihood of a positive experience and customer loyalty to your website.
There are several common strategies utilized for marketing through chat and messaging apps, such as:
- Delivering content such as new products, deals, and other customer testimonies
- Reminding customers of an abandoned cart once they have created an account or have placed past orders
- Providing additional product information or incentives on a product that the customer has viewed or added to a cart, but has not yet purchased
Examples of Conversational Commerce in Action
Amazon Alexa
Alexa is capable of addressing a wide range of queries, from basic questions to shopping inquiries, providing satisfactory responses.
Alexa serves as a practical household tool that offers various functionalities like searching on Google, adding items to an Amazon shopping cart, making purchases if payment details are linked, linking with other apps and devices like a home sound system for playing music, and more. However, its primary area of expertise lies in providing shopping assistance by acting as a voice-activated virtual shopping assistant.
Voice assistance through speaker and microphone is provided by the platform.
Advantages: Ease of use, quick, ideal for accomplishing multiple tasks simultaneously.
The reasons behind its effectiveness are as follows:
- Makes shopping easy, which makes selling easy for Amazon
- Hands-free technology allows for convenience and multitasking
- Seldom fails to understand your questions, making it very easy to use
Starbucks
By utilizing its app, Starbucks has effectively addressed a major issue most individuals encounter during their morning routine: waiting in coffee queues. With the app, you can communicate with a “virtual barista” to place your order, granting a similar sensation of interacting with a real person, while customizing your morning beverage with preferred peculiarities.
By utilizing the message-based ordering system, one can conveniently place an order, send texts, and make payments through their device using voice commands, thereby achieving complete efficiency in the process. Upon completion, a notification is received to inform when the order is prepared, enabling the avoidance of lengthy queues.
Mobile app platform in a text message format.
Advantages include prompt service, the ability to personalize orders, and notifications when the order is ready.
The reason for its efficacy:
- Adds convenience to the customers’ morning
- Multiple methods of ordering, from text to voice command
- Payments are linked, further adding to the convenience
- Connects you with local stores before beginning the ordering process
The Final Word
Conversational commerce has the potential to bring substantial advantages to any brand by leveraging real-time communication tools like bots, messenger apps, and voice assistants.
